A sod harvester usually has a horizontal blade which severs the sod from the ground at the desired thickness, in combination with two vertical side blades which cut the sod to the desired width. Thus, a continuous strip of sod is formed as the harvester travels along its cutting path. A vertical cutter blade periodically is driven into the sod adjacent the undercutting blade to sever the strip to length.
As the strip of sod is cut, it is conveyed away from the cutter blade, usually up an inclined conveyor, for forming into rolls. U.S. Pat. No. 3,509,944 (Brouwer et al.) discloses a prior art sod harvester which includes such an inclined conveyor, and in which the rolls of sod are formed adjacent the upper end of the conveyor. The sod harvester disclosed in the '944 patent is designed to be mounted at the side of a farm tractor, by which the harvester is propelled.
U.S. Pat. No. 4,832,130 (Brouwer et al.) discloses a self-propelled sod harvester. In this case, the harvester also includes an inclined conveyor but in this case, the strip of sod is delivered by the conveyor into a separate roll-forming enclosure which includes a pair of conveyors disposed generally at right angles to one another, for forming the roll. The formed rolls are discharged onto a cart at the end of the harvester which can convey the formed roll to either side of the cart and clear of the harvester on its next pass. The '130 patent also discloses a curved conveyor for discharging formed rolls clear of the harvester.
U.S. Pat. No. Re. 34,827 (Dover, et al.) discloses a method of and apparatus for cutting sod in which a sheet of netting is inserted into the sod roll as it is formed.
The disclosures of U.S. Pat. Nos. 3,509,944, 4,832,130 and Re. 34,827 are incorporated herein by reference.
Large rolls of sod produced by sod harvesters can be difficult to handle. For example, a large roll may be, say, four feet in diameter and, accordingly, will be relatively heavy. Mechanical equipment such as forklift trucks are required to handle and transport the rolls. At the site at which the sod is to be laid, the roll must be appropriately positioned and oriented so that it can be unrolled where the sod is required to be laid. Manipulating and moving the sod after it has been unrolled can be difficult.
Other methods of harvesting and handling sod include formation of small rolls or slabs of sod that are stacked and transported on pallets. While these methods are not as efficient in terms of manpower as methods in which the sod is harvested in large rolls, they do have the advantage that the individual rolls or slabs can easily be handled at the laying site and manoeuvred into place.